


getting by with some friends

by 002peach



Category: Big Hero 6 (2014), Big Hero 6: The Series (Cartoon)
Genre: Characters appear in future chapters, Gen, Good Nephew Hiro, More characters to be added
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-12-21
Updated: 2019-12-24
Packaged: 2021-02-26 08:00:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,721
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21890083
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/002peach/pseuds/002peach
Summary: Aunt Cass decides she might need extra help at the Lucky Cat Cafe, and Hiro is right beside her to help.
Comments: 3
Kudos: 17





	1. Chapter 1

After tonight’s latest round of late-night grocery shopping, she was more than ready to collapse into her bed before she opened up shop again at seven in the morning- she was  _ not  _ ready to come home to an intervention, but Cass has also learned from a long eleven years of raising Hiro that she shouldn’t be too surprised by his ability to surprise her.

“How long have you been sitting here for?” She asked, flipping on the light switch to the cafe to better see her nephew sitting at the table dead center of the room, arms crossed with his associates (Baymax and Mochi) on either side of him.

“Not the point.” He stuck a hand out to Baymax before he could answer. “Aunt Cass, you’ve officially been working way too hard lately. I know what you’re going to say, so I’ve got some testimonials lined up, ready to go.” He patted Baymax’s stomach, a screen prompt appearing. “We’ll start with Wasabi’s first since he made the best points, then Fred-“

“Hiro.” Cass set down her grocery bags and all but slumped completely onto the chair across from him. “I hear what you’re saying, trust me.” Her exhaustion must have been palpable from the worried look on Hiro’s face, so she figured that there was no avoiding the topic anymore. “I guess I should know better by now than to try and hide things from you.” She chuckled lightly. “It has been a busy couple of months…”

“ _ And _ its only going to get busier now that Summer’s started and everyone’s about to be on break now.” The screen on Baymax’s stomach popped up again, no doubt with some sort of data to back this up, so Aunt Cass grabbed both their hands instead for their full attention. Mochi rubbed his head against her and Hiro’s hands, purring.

“Been in this business for a while now, Hiro, I know. And I hear you completely. I know I’ve been...hesitant to outside help sometimes, even I can learn my lesson sometimes.” 

“You’ll take a vacation then?” Hiro asked hopefully. “Not a chance.” Cass said firmly, to Hiro’s obvious exasperation. “I was thinking more hiring someone!” He perked up at slightly.

“It’s been a hard couple of months, but that also means it’s been very successful. You know that, right?” Hiro nodded, seemingly placated by her tiny burst of energy. “I think we might have it in our budget to hire a person or two. Take the load off a bit. Sounds good, right?” Hiro seemed to mull this over carefully, brows knitted. “It would mean that  _ you’d _ have to help out a lot less too.”

“You know I don’t mind helping out!” He paused then, eyes flickering off to the side. “But I mean…if  _ you _ think that would be a good idea…” Cass let out a laugh at that, ruffling his hair, much to his fond annoyance. “What do you think, Baymax?”

Baymax’s head whirred softly towards Cass, a small graph popping up on his stomach. “ _ Most small businesses can expect up to a 75% increase in morale, productivity, revenue, i- _ “

“It’s decided then!” Cass slapped the table triumphantly. “Let’s go to sleep in celebration.”

—

“Hiro, I can’t do this.” She cornered him next the stairs the moment Hiro got home from his last final at night. Maybe he deserved this for ambushing her when  _ she  _ was at her lowest.

“Aunt Cass, it’s only been a day.” 

“I  _ know,  _ I know, just...I remembered part of the reason why I hate... _ this _ .” She slumped over on Hiro’s shoulder, and he offered her a pity pat on the back. “Look, I know it’s horrible, but honestly, every hire I’ve ever made here was basically through your mom... _ she  _ was good at that,  _ I’m  _ the one that talks to the guests! Interviews are so  _ stuffy _ and  _ stressful _ , so many people came in that I don’t want around you- that I don’t want around  _ me. _ ” She shuddered, and for lack of a better response, Hiro offered another sad pat. She shot up then suddenly, grasping his shoulders tightly.

“I don’t suppose any of your friends would be interested in a Summer job, would they?” Hiro grimaced slightly. 

“I’m really not sure...most of them are taking Summer session classes, and they’re pretty intensive…” Him included, though he opted for a session B class. Aunt Cass heaved a profound sigh, stepping back from the boy, shoulders heavy with burden. “No, no, it’s fine, don’t worry. I’ll find someone...eventually...somewhere…somehow.” She shuffled away miserably into the darkness of the closed cafe, as Hiro shot a look over at Baymax. 

“She’s just a little dramatic sometimes.” Hiro whispered, which Baymax probably took a note of. 

It didn't do much to assuage Hiro’s worries however- he  _ was  _ the one who suggested some sort of change to how much his aunt was working in the first place. It felt a little selfish to not help in the process of actually accomplishing that. But he didn’t lie to her either- the team  _ was  _ busy, and all of them with the exception of Fred had side jobs anyway (and as much as he loved and cared for all of this dear friends, there was no way he was going to subject his aunt’s pride and livelihood to Fred). So he would simply have to think outside the box a bit.

“Who do we know that’s an adult able to work?” Baymax’s head whirred softly. “That would  _ not  _ be a complete train-wreck or a liability.” Baymax paused, and whirred for even longer. Hiro was relaxing on his bed when a small  _ ding!  _ came from the corner, and Baymax shuffles his way over. “ _ I have compiled a list _ .”

—

Cass scanned her eyes over the crumpled piece of paper she held in her hand again before looking up again, eyes narrowed.

“So Felony Carl’s your...government name.”

“More or less.”

“More or less or…”

“I can vouch for him, Aunt Cass, he’s a good guy.” Hiro cut in, smiling brightly. He knew it was hard for his aunt to resist that smile- her small sigh proving just that. “Well, any friend of my nephew’s a friend of mine...would you mind walking me through your previous work experience?”

“For the sake of complete transparency, I would like to explain that my mother nicknamed me Felony Carl, but that I have also, indeed, been involved in several felony level crimes.” 

“Uh huh.”

“But beyond my long professional criminal work, I have worked at several construction sites, bouncer jobs, and a small cafe in 1993.”

“Cafe experience!” Hiro’s arms shot up, prompting Baymax to mimic the action. “It’s perfect, he’s perfect.” 

Cass, for her part, didn’t seem quite convinced, but not quite deterred either. Hiro’s cheeks were beginning to hurt from how long he had been holding his smile. She glanced down to see Mochi purring happily and loudly at Felony Carl’s ankles, with a large hand coming down to scratch behind his ears.

“Well, you do seem very nice...nice is definitely good here. Are you able to work weekends?”

“Yes. I simply request two Mondays off a month for the book club I’m starting. We’ve got a promising group of people coming together, so I gotta keep the momentum.” Mochi was in heaven now lying on Felony Carl’s lap. 

“Oh, you could host it here if you like!” Cass brightened, before she paused slightly. “Just…”

“At this point, I keep the name Felony Carl more for sentimental purposes.” He said, unperturbed by Mochi crawling on his head now. Hiro rubbed the back of his arm skeptically. “I mean, technically Aunt Cass, if you’re going based off criminal records, I wouldn’t be eligible to work here either…”

Cass sighed again, placing a fond palm on Hiro’s cheek. “You little delinquent. Alright, you’re hired. Welcome aboard, Felony Carl.” Hiro and Baymax shared a quick fist-bump, Baymax muffling his trademark  _ falalala _ . 

“Thank you for the opportunity, I will not disappoint you.” A massive hand wrapped around Cass’s in a firm handshake that she pretended she didn’t have to put half her strength towards. “When can you start?” She asked. 

“I can start tonight if you’d like.” Cass opened her mouth to respond before Hiro enthusiastically cut in again. “That’d be great! Thanks a ton, Felony Carl.” Felony Carl gave him a firm nod as Hiro handed him a flimsy apron. Hiro then glanced over at his aunt, her face still somewhat hesitant. 

“Now you can  _ relax _ . Baymax and I can watch over everything tonight.” He figured this would be as good a day as any to do so- there was still one day left of finals for most students of the surrounding universities, so they had the smallest reprieve before the Summer rush began. Cass still didn’t seem entirely convinced, but she gave Hiro a grateful smile. “I’ll leave it to you three then.” She said with a small pat to Hiro’s head.

—

She had figured that Hiro would have something up his sleeve to ensure Aunt Cass didn’t go downstairs at any point of the night to check up on things- some sort of weird gadget or fancy invisible wall- maybe lasers? It turned out, he had settled for a nightstand blocking her way at the foot of the stairs. Non-threatening, but loud enough to alert him and Baymax if she tried escaping. Her odd, considerate nephew that she loved. She shook her head settled back on her bed, Mochi jumping up to join her on her stomach and she lay back, eyes fixed on the ceiling, the sound of traffic and people filtering in softly through the window. 

She knew she could trust Hiro, really. She told herself before, time and time again, she should stop being so surprised by him, but once again, she found herself a little in awe of how fast he was growing. Convincing her to make up her mind about hiring some extra help-  _ feels like something Tadashi would do.  _ Something Tadashi  _ did _ try to do, but Cass was much more sprightly, and  _ much  _ more stubborn a while back. 

If she was being honest with herself, she knew she was never the fastest learner (only when she  _ had  _ to be). But if there was anything at all that she might have learned from the depths of what she and Hiro had to fight through, was that all she had really was the help being offered to her- she’d be a fool not to take it. Not from the family she loved the most beside her, the ones she would have (still would) give anything for. 

All Tadashi had ever wanted to do was help, and to think back on all the times she denied it- her eyes squeezed shut, her heart gripping tighter. Mochi meowed softly, his little paw coming to bat at her cheek. She smiled and pulled him closer. No, Tadashi would never fault her for it. He loved to give, and he deserved to receive- but he would never ask or expect it. In so many ways, they couldn’t be more different, but to know Hiro had that same heart, it kept her warm. He didn’t just have her, they had each other.

Mochi meowed again, louder this time, and Cass blinked. She wiped at her eyes then, surprised. “Getting a little emotional there, huh?” She laughed out loud to herself, Mochi sitting patiently beside her. “That’s enough for tonight.” She sighed, her smile settling into something softer. 

She flipped on the TV, hoping for something good. “Cooking channel tonight, Mochi?” The cat purred loudly in response. “Yeah, I’m in a judge-y mood too.”

—

“How’s my work been so far tonight?” Felony Carl peered down at Hiro, seated at the barista area. 

“Doing good! Seems like the customers like you.” Felony Carl waved off the praise with a modest hand, while Baymax turned towards them, index finger up. “ _ We have received, eight satisfactory customer surveys tonight. _ ”

“See, I told you this’d be a good idea.” Hiro lightly slapped Felony Carl’s arm, immediately realizing then it was the equivalent of slapping a stainless steel rock. He nursed his stinging fingers secretly under the barista bar as Felony Carl began speaking. 

“Thank you for your encouragement. It can be difficult to find work due to my circumstances.”

“The whole...name thing I’m assuming?” Felony Carl nodded. “People find it to be off-putting.”

“I could see that.” Hiro agreed. 

“But Globby agreed that it would be good for me to build my resume back up again. Been out of the game for a while. But I knew the hardest part would simply be getting a foot back in. Lost a lot of opportunities due to past mistakes of mine- don’t want to assume, but I figure maybe you could understand a bit.” 

Hiro paused for a moment to consider that this was definitely the weirdest thing he ever had in common with someone, and maybe the  _ only  _ thing he had in common with Felony Carl. “Well, I mean, I’m a little too young still to apply for any jobs...and the dean of my school was uh, understanding, more or less, about the whole bot-fighting thing.” Felony Carl nodded sagely.

“In times like these, we can only have the kindness of others to rely on. I have my deep relationship with Globby, and you have yours with your dean. And now I know I can have trust in your kindness as well.” 

As odd as it was to be having this conversation with him, Hiro smiled genuinely. “Ah, it’s not a big deal. I’m glad I could help you out, but you’re the one who’s really helping me and my aunt out.”

“I don’t want to overstep my boundaries, but I feel you should give yourself more than credit than that. Your aunt is depending on your kindness too. The universe will pay it forward to you soon.” With that, the front door jingled with the sound of people coming in. Felony Carl patted Hiro’s head (his hand basically covering his entire head completely) and walked back off into the dining area to greet them. 

Hiro turned back towards Baymax behind him. “ _ Is your morale up? _ ” Hiro blinked. “Huh?”

“ _ As a result of hiring Felony Carl, are you experiencing increased workplace morale? _ ” Hiro remembered then Baymax’s previous analysis and smiled. “I am actually.” He said, and Baymax seemed satisfied with his response as his head turned towards the dining area, watching Felony Carl chat with the new customers.

All in all, a good decision made, and a load off his aunt’s back. Hiro leaned back in his seat, pleased. Then he got to thinking again.  _ Felony Carl could probably use some help once the Summer rush starts, though... _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so I binged this series earlier this month and I really love it! it’s so much fun and after watching a lot serialized content on streaming sites, it’s nice to settle in and watch something a little more on the episodic side. i always love just a good episode of characters just fucking around having fun in-between plot lmao
> 
> this is basically going to be entirely plot-less because this is mainly an excuse to write about random characters I really like in the show, but I hope that it can still be mildly entertaining if anything haha regardless, thank you for reading!
> 
> also- I am from the US, so if anyone doesn’t know/if it’s different at all in other countries, most colleges (in CA at least lol) offer summer courses split up into three options: a A option (beginning half of summer), B option (last half of summer), or a C option (right in the middle of summer), so that’s what Hiro choosing a B option is in reference too!
> 
> (also also if anyone ever wants to chat/see some occasional doodles i’m chadstrid over on twitter~)


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i don’t feel like there’s enough of it to justify tagging the entire fic as it, so small notice/warning here for the teeny tiniest bit of shipping throughout this for those who may or may not like that lol

Right before the semester ended, Karmi had returned to SFIT. It was maybe six months since Hiro had last seen her, and he didn’t know what to expect at all when he ran into her (he was  _ not  _ looking for her,  _ he ran into her _ ), but he probably should have expected how awkward it would be initially.

He couldn’t quite decide if, when she had left, they were under either really good terms or really,  _ really _ terrible terms. And while he figured that in all that time, he should just be honest with himself and admit that he would be happy to see her again, he couldn’t blame her if she didn’t feel the same way. 

They had almost bumped into each other, her eyes shot open and they stood completely still for a moment. He found himself at a loss for words- he opened his mouth to try and figure it out on the fly before she cut him off. 

“You’re in my way, genius ” His mouth immediately clamped shut, but she let out a small laugh after, and he let go of the breath he didn’t know he was holding in. 

—

With all that out of way, and at Granville’s firm insistence , she managed to stranglehold him into helping her lug boxes back and forth into her lab a week later. Baymax, thankfully, was there to take most of the load, with even Wasabi and Fred stopping by for a bit to help.

“What do you even need half of this for…” Hiro grumbled, carrying a box he was pretty sure was  _ just _ stuffed animals. 

“Just because you have no soul, personality, or style, doesn’t mean everyone else doesn’t.” He watched her delicately and lovingly place a plush of god knows  _ what  _ kind of virus next to her work desk. He stuck his tongue out at her as Baymax placed three other boxes on the floor and walked out to grab more, leaving them alone momentarily. Hiro glanced around. “So...what have you been up to lately?”

“Not much.” She replied after a moment, her focus still on plush placement. “Mostly just writing.” Another pause. “I had a job for a little bit too.” 

“Really? Where at?” Hiro reached a hand out at a plush before Karmi swatted his hand away, not even looking his way. “My uncle owns a restaurant. I really wasn’t there for that long, I just figured that if I were to come back, I’d have to start saving up.” 

“Save up?” Karmi looked over at him finally, a withering look on her face. “Yes,  _ save up _ . Not all of us get full-rides here, genius. My tuition’s pretty much waived off, but I still have to pay out of pocket for books.” Hiro’s eyes flicked down to the floor, feeling slightly embarrassed for not actually knowing that. 

“Have you always had a job then?”

“No, my parents helped me out a bit for my first semester...and my internship was paid.” Hiro froze for a moment- the first direct mention of what had happened before. There was something in the finality of her words that told him that he probably shouldn’t press it further- not now.

“Oh...Krei Tech’s wasn’t.” Hiro trailed off, a little too bitterly. Karmi looked over at him again and blinked. Then she huffed back a laugh. 

“Don’t laugh!” That only coaxed her laughter out completely. “Laughing at child labor exploitation...unbelievable.” He shook his head solemnly.

“Well, if it makes you feel better, I’m not getting paid anymore, so.” She responded, before she turned back, apparently finding new-found inspiration on how to arrange her plushes. She got back to work, but a thought suddenly stuck Hiro like lightning. He turned towards her fully, index finger shot right at her. She shot him another withering look, an eyebrow raised. “Do you  _ need _ something?”

—

She was doing him a huge favor, and he was never going to let her know that. 

“Just warning you, you’re gonna have to go through a  _ really  _ rigorous interview process. Maybe even harder than SFIT’s. I’d completely understand if someone like you can’t make it, and that’s why Baymax will be here after for you.” He gestured to Baymax, lifting up a puffy arm. “ _ I am here for emotional support. _ ”

“Yeah, I think I’ll manage somehow.” The front door jingle alerted Aunt Cass and Felony Carl’s attention towards the two teenagers and Baymax. 

“Hiro! And who’s this?” Aunt Cass said excitedly, scooting out of the barista area to greet them. 

“Aunt Cass, this is Karmi, she’s interested in an interview. Don’t worry, I already prepped her for-“

“Oh, aren’t you just the  _ cutest thing! _ ” Aunt Cass cooed, to Karmi’s mild surprise and Hiro’s  _ severe  _ shock. “You’re hired! When can you start?”

“ _ Aunt Cass! _ ” Karmi shot back the most insidiously smug face he ever had the displeasure of seeing before turning back towards Aunt Cass, her smile sweet and bright. “Thank you miss, it’s an honor! I can start this weekend.”

“Oh, just call me Aunt Cass! No need to thank me or for any fussy formalities, any friend of Hiro’s is a friend of mine.” She smiled, and Hiro’s mouth gaped open and shut, realizing with horror that he could no longer argue against that point. Karmi directed her smile towards Hiro now, a positively  _ evil _ edge seeping through. 

“ _ Hiro, your blood pressure has spiked slightly. Do you- _ “ Hiro placed a exasperated hand on Baymax’s arm to cut him off. This was all for helping Karmi  _ and  _ Aunt Cass. And him.  _ I guess. _

“Oh! Let me introduce you to your new co-worker!” Aunt Cass said cheerily, patting Felony Carl on the arm. Felony Carl stuck out his hand to shake Karmi’s hand (Hiro noted with amusement at how Karmi’s eyes widened at the handshake knocking her forward slightly). 

“Felony Carl.”

“Oh, um...I’m Karmi.”

“My mother gave me the nickname.”

“Oh, that’s nice.” Karmi responded, slightly confused but sincerely. “My...mom gave me this name too?” Hiro snickered behind her, dodging her hand swatting back at him. 

—

Karmi may have won the battle of being hired on the spot, but she was clearly losing the war of actually  _ working _ there. Hiro didn’t think he had ever seen her look so miserable- Hell, he didn’t think he had ever seen  _ anyone  _ look that miserable taking orders. The customers didn’t seem to mind too much, though Karmi only received maybe a fraction of the customer surveys filled out in her first three shifts than Felony Carl did his first three hours. 

But something about her entire demeanor was so- so  _ sad _ . He relished it for a good five hours of her first ever shift, but now he was just a little worried.

At 10:00 PM, things had begun to slow down, so now was as good a time as ever to investigate. “Hey, Karmi.” Hiro called out from behind the barista area. 

“ _ What _ .” 

Hiro clasped his hands together. “Okay, not trying to tell you how to do your job, but-“

“But that’s exactly what you’re gonna do right now.” He pointedly ignored her death glare and pushed on. 

“You just...don’t seem...happy.”

“ _ I’m not _ .”

“Okay fair, appreciate the honesty. But...I’m not saying for me, but my Aunt Cass…”

“ _ You _ do this then.” Karmi pointed over at him before a jingle brought her attention to the door. Contrary to what they thought, the jingle from the last customer in the cafe actually leaving, and at that, Karmi rushed into the barista area towards the oven. 

“I already have a job! We both do what we do best, me over here and you over...there.”

“Oh right, I’m sorry.” Karmi said, looking up at him in his seat while she crouched down, rummaging through the cabinets. “How else would this place still be standing if you weren’t sitting there doing nothing with your giant marshmallow pal?” 

“I do the bookkeeping!” He held up a binder and pointed towards Baymax. “And Baymax is security!” Baymax could not confirm as he was preoccupied with lying down on the floor, letting Mochi knead his stomach. Karmi scoffed as she dropped the ingredients gathered in her hands on the countertop. 

“And I’m not saying you're doing bad or anything, ‘cause you’re not, really!” Hiro threw up his hands in preemptive defense. He realized now this was probably a  _ very  _ bad time to talk about this, but he couldn’t really take back what he started- might as well attempt to salvage somewhat instead. 

“And Aunt Cass really likes you!-“ He fought the urge to add something snide to that- “she’s just always talking about those customers surveys ‘cause we kind of rely on them a lot...I don’t really get a lot either, except from like...old ladies or like really nice moms some-“

A swift hand right in front of his face cut him off. “ _ Please _ stop talking.” He nodded. Her face then dropped from annoyed to something closer to regret. “Like I said, worked at a restaurant before, I know all this. The customer’s are a lot nicer here, if anything, just. It’s really tiring.” She turned her expression entirely towards her mixing bowl, away from him. “Having to talk to so many people for so long.” She finished, considerably quieter. 

“Oh.” He pondered this. It didn’t seem too surprising a thing for her to feel, honestly. “I can understand that...I kind of had to get used to it, I guess, but…” He blinked then. “Wait, what are you doing?”

The withering look he was all too familiar with now made its appearance once again. “Take a couple of guesses, genius. Your aunt had mentioned that some ingredients in here might be going bad soon, so I figured we might as well put them to use.” Hiro blinked again. “Ugh.” She shoved something in his face- a cookie? “I made these earlier when it wasn’t busy.”

He looked down at the offered cookie and knew something had to be said. “You bake?” was that something.

“I guess that’s why  _ you’re  _ the youngest student at SFIT now, huh?” She waved the cookie around again before he finally came to his senses and took it, taking a bite. His eyes shot open then- “Wait, this is actually really good.”

“I know.” Karmi said smugly. “Wait-  _ don’t sound so surprised _ !”

“I’m not!” Hiro said in defense again, having devoured the rest of the cookie already. “I just didn’t know you baked, is all.”

She narrowed her eyes, seeming to size him up before she turned back to her current baking project, her expression somewhat... _ embarrassed?  _ “Well, I haven’t actually been doing it for that long. I already knew how to bake a little before, but I picked it up more these past few months.” She stopped stirring then, her expression turning thoughtful instead. 

“I guess that was something else I was up to.” There was a look in her eyes, far off, that he didn’t recognize. It didn’t seem right then either to press it any further. So he simply scooted closer towards her instead. 

“I’m not really surprised that you’d be good at a bunch of other things.” He said sincerely, and her face turned somewhat embarrassed again- but a softer, better form of it, at least. “Relax, you’ve only tried one thing from me...but thanks.” She smiled at him, and they stayed like that for a moment, the cafe calm and silent. 

A loud screech then shattered that silence- Karmi caught the bowl she almost knocked over while Hiro very hastily made his way back over to the other side of the barista area, leaning his head to see Baymax shuffling behind a scampering Mochi, picking up a knocked over chair.

“Oh.” Hiro said, inexplicably annoyed for reasons he decided not to think too hard on. “Mochi likes jumping on Baymax’s stomach- it doesn’t end up well most of the time.”

“Right.” Karmi responded, clutching her mixing bowl. Hiro’s eyes glanced back at her and he was struck again with another fool-proof idea.

“Maybe you don’t actually have to be a server!” Karmi looked at him, completely confused by this sudden outburst. “You want me to...quit?”

“No, I mean, if you can bake most of the pastries we serve here, maybe that could be your job instead. Aunt Cass wakes up pretty early every morning to bake half the inventory, it’d probably be more weight off her shoulders if she had some help.” He trailed off then, considering the nearly empty racks of pastry dishes behind him. “She is kind of particular when it comes to things like that though. She likes to keep of all designs on them pretty neat-“

“I can learn how to do that.” Karmi quickly said, suddenly very close to Hiro again. He stepped back in surprise but she followed, placing a hand on his shoulder that his eyes flickered to quickly before coming back to her. “I’m a fast learner.”

“I know, but Aunt Cass-“

“ _ Hiro _ .” Another hand came to grasp at his other shoulder and he stiffened slightly at the barely concealed desperation in her eyes. “Do you understand what it’s like being yelled at for the dumbest things you didn’t even  _ do _ ?”

“Er, kind of.”

“You  _ have  _ to talk to her then. I’ll do  _ anything- within reason! _ ” She punctuated, at the now diabolical look on his face. “I’m  _ not  _ begging. But-“

“Okay, okay! I’ll talk to her about it.” He placed his hands on her arms gently to relinquish himself from her death grip. “You do owe me though.” 

“That’s…” through gritted teeth, her face went through every emotion humanly possible. “...fine.” 

The familIar jingle of the front door alerted them to a customer slipping in right before closing. “I can take this if you want-“ Hiro began, but Karmi held up a finger to stop him. “It’s fine.” She sighed. Hiro gave a small thumbs up in sympathy as she dragged herself back out into the dining area.

(“ _ Hiro, your heart rate has increased slightly. Do you- _ “

“Don’t you have a cat to find, Baymax?”)

—

“Aunt Cass, try this.” Cass took the cookie Hiro offered and took a bite. “Hiro, did you make this? It’s delicious!”

Hiro leaned over slightly on the barista table. “Actually,” he began, a little louder than usual. “Karmi made them!” Karmi’s head whipped around at this, causing her to almost overfill a customer’s coffee mug. She corrected herself and walked over to Hiro and his aunt. 

“Karmi, you bake?” Cass asked in cheerful surprise. “Oh, uh, a little bit, yes.” She glanced over at Hiro behind Cass, gesturing for Karmi to continue. 

“Lately I’ve actually been...practicing designs…” Hiro held out a hand for Karmi to pause as she quickly glanced back up at Cass, who seemed not to notice or care that Karmi had not looked at her once before this. 

“Oh wow! It’s a ton of fun, right! Huge part of the reason why I was ever even interested in opening up shop in the first place.” Cass responded all too happily. Hiro leaned over even further. “Isn’t it nice that we hired someone good with customers  _ and  _ baking?” Karmi shot a thoroughly skeptical look over at Hiro, but he maintained a perfect poker face. “It’d be a shame to waste that talent.”

“Huh, you know, you’re right…” Cass trailed off in consideration, and Karmi looked up at her with wide, almost pleading eyes. Hiro, for his part, observed his aunt smugly, ready to cash in on whatever favors he was going to collect from Karmi before Cass spoke again. “I love Felony Carl but he’s not too much a multi-tasker...but if you  _ are _ , it would be such a relief to have some help sometimes setting out pastries in-between your serving shifts!”

Hiro’s smile only dropped minisculely as he watched Karmi’s soul dissolve from her body. Time to shift into something more  _ persuasive _ .

“Maybe she could just. Only do pastries.” He offered, as Cass looked back at him blankly. Karmi did too, the light in her eyes gone. “Like, that could just  _ be  _ her job. Just pastries. No serving. Pastries.”

Cass let out a small breath at this, rubbing the back of her head. “Well, that would honestly be even more helpful for  _ me _ , but Felony Carl’s still gonna need the help out in the dining area since it’s beginning to pick up already. I mean, if we could find a replacement server…” 

“It’s alright, Ms. Hamada.” Karmi said suddenly, with a small smile she directed at Hiro first, before turning it towards Cass. “I’m not a professional or anything anyway. Maybe it would just be better to find an actual chef to hire…”

“Hey, wait!” Hiro interjected. He didn’t know why but there was something so dejected in Karmi’s expression that didn’t like seeing- maybe it was just another tiny thing they had in common deep down. He would have liked for someone to give him a hand too when he was still too shy to ask for it himself. “It’s okay, I can-“ 

He paused immediately but Aunt Cass swooped in to fill in the gaps. “You’ll take over Karmi’s spot?” She asked, eyes wide with surprise. Karmi held a similar expression, and Hiro realized he both salvaged the situation, and kind of, sort of messed up completely. He huffed, accepting defeat. “Yeah, I’ll take over for now…”

“Oh Hiro! I never knew you wanted to run tables again! Must be going crazy not having anything to do with school being out, huh?” Cass put her hands on her hips. 

“Yup, that’s...it. You got me.”

“Well, I can think of so many regulars that’ll be so happy to see more of you again.” She pinched his cheeks tightly and he tried (and failed) to ignore the tiny smirk Karmi gave at this. She quickly dropped it when Cass turned back around to her. “Are you open during the weekends for training? I can run by all of our trademark designs with you and we could do a bunch of test runs, what do you say?”

“That sounds great!” Karmi said, and Cass gave one last smile at the two of them before she walked off, back to taking orders. Hiro looked over at Karmi, and for a moment, she was staring at him like he was Captain Cutie himself ( _ which, I mean…)  _ That moment was gone before he could blink, however, as her face shifted back into her trademark smugness with a tinge of something lighter. 

“You owe me  _ twice  _ now-  _ double  _ owe me.  _ With interest! _ ” He called out after as she laughed and followed Cass back into the dining area. He let out an exasperated huff, but there wasn’t too much anger, or even annoyance, behind it. All part of helping out a friend.  _ I guess _ .

“ _ Hiro, your blood pressure has increased slightly, again. _ ” Hiro glanced back over at Baymax, now standing next to him. “You’re so lucky you’ll never have to work a day in your life.” Hiro replied, only a little enviously. 

“ _ I am programmed to provide support and care for the length of duration of my life cycle. If you are speaking of ‘work’ in terms of, wage labor, and-“  _ Baymax continued, but Hiro’s eyes narrowed at him. Most of his ideas hadn’t been going the way he expected exactly- but they technically hadn’t  _ failed  _ either. So perhaps this one would be fool-proof as well.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so i’m not entirely sure how long this fic will end up being as a whole, but i’m definitely thinking no more than 4 chapters. writing long stories is so difficult honestly lmao
> 
> thank you for reading! ❤️


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